The Battle Royale Warzone will undergo significant changes this year. With the new Call of Duty: Vanguard, Warzone will receive a new graphics engine while the developers will take inspiration from the multiplayer experience of the new CoD. MeinMMO summarizes the 5 most important changes that may be ahead of us.
When and how does the “Fusion” start? The previous statements from the developers about when and how Call of Duty: Warzone will change with CoD: Vanguard leave much room for speculation:
- When: December 2, 2021
- How: “With the release of Vanguard, we want to ensure that the game’s feel and character extends into Warzone beyond the multiplayer experience.”
- Source: Multiplayer Reveal Vanguard via YouTube
We already know the date of the transition, but we are still missing details about the gameplay.
But we do know: Warzone will get the Vanguard engine and should feel quite similar to the multiplayer. Additionally, there will be a new, large map, the anti-cheat system “RICOCHET,” and the old weapons and cosmetics will remain in the game.
Based on the current information, we have looked at the Battle Royale and summarized the 5 most important changes that Warzone will likely undergo with the fusion of Vanguard:
1. New map with fresh setting
Regarding the new map, most things are already clear. The update with the transition to Vanguard is called the “Pacific Update.” Instead of the gray city of “Verdansk,” characterized by the communist mismanagement of that time, Warzone will be set on a green, colorful Pacific island at the end of the year.
However, the setting is not yet entirely secure. When transitioning to Cold War, Warzone also moved to the “Cold War” setting. But the first images of the new map raise some doubts about whether Warzone will actually go to the 1940s:
Thus, the building, which seems to be a cinema, looks too modern for the 1940s. Fluorescent tubes did exist by then, and the colors – red with neon gas, blue with xenon gas – were available. However, the production of tubes with curved glass is not typical for the 1940s.
Similar observations can be made regarding the parabolic antennas seen in the second image. This type of antenna did exist in the 1940s, but it did not come into widespread use until the discovery and intensive use of microwaves – after World War II. Thus, the large antennas do not quite fit the picture.
In image 3, a modern forklift can be seen on the left. Again, the technology and the idea for it existed already, but the design of the forklift does not fit into the World War II era. The object in the picture looks more like a modern, battery-powered forklift.
What is certain is that at the end of the year, Warzone will head to the Pacific. However, the time period cannot yet be clearly identified. Given the many modern elements that Warzone would bring into the World War II setting, it makes sense to let Warzone be set in our current time. But we currently lack the information for a definitive statement.
You can find more about the new map of Warzone here:
2. New graphics with revised gameplay
There are still many unanswered questions about the graphics engine. Warzone is set to switch to the new graphics, but to what extent?
At the moment, it looks like Warzone will take over the gameplay from the multiplayer 1:1 – similar to how it was at launch. Warzone was essentially a “Battle Royale” clone of Modern Warfare, the CoD from 2019. Even the weapon balancing was connected, and changes in multiplayer also applied to Warzone and vice versa.
Cold War, on the other hand, did its own thing, and the weapons in multiplayer were always a bit different from Warzone, and the graphics engine did not come to the Battle Royale.
With Vanguard, Warzone will likely adopt everything – from movement to new perks to fresh graphics that are state-of-the-art. We have already examined some of these small changes with significant impacts:
- An important trick of the pros changes with CoD Vanguard – affects Warzone significantly
- A small weapon mechanic from CoD Vanguard could disrupt the flow of Warzone
- Players demand changes to important Vanguard mechanics – “The mini-map is useless!”
If you want to see some gameplay from the Vanguard beta and thus how Warzone looks at the end of the year, we are embedding 10 minutes of beta gameplay here:
3. New weapons with 10 attachments
There are still some uncertainties regarding the weapons, but some facts are already certain:
- All weapons from Vanguard will come to Warzone
- Vanguard weapons will have 10 attachments in Warzone
- All old weapons will remain in the game
The first two Vanguard weapons are already available in Warzone, and the StG 44 also came directly with a complete setup of 10 attachments:
The laser attachment makes room for the types of ammunition, and the additional attachments from Modern Warfare return with Vanguard. Especially the types of ammunition are exciting for the gameplay of a new Warzone. The Vanguard weapons could bring fire damage into the Battle Royale or bullets that slow down opponents.
However, how this fits in with the old weapons and how the gunsmith resolves the additional slots remains unclear.
As it stands, the old weapons will remain just as they are – with 5 attachments. Your old weapon skins will also not expire and can be used in Warzone without any problems, but not in Vanguard.
For more about how to build your loadouts in Warzone with Vanguard, find more info here:
4. New perks for different loadouts
There is currently little concrete information regarding this change. However, perks are an important part of the gameplay and also influence other mechanics such as footstep volume, mini-map, or movement speed. With a new engine, such aspects tend to change, and the beta has already shown that considerable changes are underway.
Whether the old gameplay systems will continue to function as usual with the new technology is rather unlikely. Nonetheless, there are several possibilities here:
- Warzone has its own perk system that is modeled after the old one
- The new perks from Vanguard will also be available in Warzone, perhaps with minor adjustments
- The current perk system will carry over to the new Warzone
That the developers can separate the perk systems between multiplayer and Warzone has been demonstrated by the introduction of 2 Warzone-exclusive perks. However, which perks you will ultimately load your loadouts with at the end of the year is still unclear. By the way, “Ghost” and “Overkill” in Vanguard are in two different perk categories.
If you want to know more about “RICOCHET” or have further questions regarding the PC driver, check out here:
If you want to see confirmed and leaked perks from Vanguard, you can find the relevant information here:
5. New Anti-Cheat for the Cheater Fight
One of the biggest issues of the “old” Warzone is cheaters. With a completely new anti-cheat system, Call of Duty aims to tackle the cheaters more aggressively and rebuild trust.
Part of the new system called “RICOCHET” also includes a kernel driver. The driver is meant to monitor the interactions of applications with the CoD games on the PC. However, the new anti-cheat is about more than just the PC driver.
The entire security infrastructure is set to be improved, and this development consists of several components:
- Server-side analysis tools
- Enhanced investigation processes
- Increased account security
- Kernel driver on the PC
If you want to know more about “RICOCHET” or have any questions about the PC driver, then check here:
What remains as always? – Battle Pass, Prestige, gameplay elements
The Battle Pass is back, and everything points to a live-season system, as introduced by Modern Warfare 2019. The well-known progression system remains in the game and will even be expanded – your Vanguard operators will also have levels, and your account level and the Battle Pass can be increased in the last two CoDs:
- Progression systems
- Account level
- Battle Pass
- Weapon level
- Operator level
- CoD level connection
- Modern Warfare from 2019
- Cold War from 2020
- Vanguard from 2021
- Battle Royale Warzone
The items from the Battle Pass can only be used in Vanguard and Warzone. This also generally applies to the cosmetic packs: All can be used in Warzone but always belong to a premium title. A skin pack from Cold War does not work in Vanguard.
What happens to the prestige system cannot be said at this time. At the start, you are definitely at level 1 and need to unlock the Vanguard equipment. Whether you can continue to work on your level from the “Cold War” era upon reaching the prestige rewards is still uncertain.
Little is expected to change regarding the gameplay elements for the “Battle Royale” mode:
- Cash
- Contracts
- Loadout deliveries
- the Gulag
These basic mechanics should remain in the game, as they are important unique features of Warzone that differentiate the battle royale from its competition. However, some changes could be possible, such as different items at the buy stations or new types of contracts.
Conclusion: Warzone is completely transitioning to Vanguard
The more I delve into this, the more I get the impression: Warzone will become Vanguard, and that in nearly every aspect.
The influence of a new engine on Warzone’s gameplay is extensive. This starts with the mechanics of step sounds and does not end with the behavior of the mini-map against enemy fire without a suppressor.
So many details change due to the new engine, and the previous gameplay systems are tailored to the mechanics of Modern Warfare.
That’s why I now think: Warzone will receive all the new systems from Vanguard, such as perks or ammunition with fire damage, while basically retaining only the old weapons. They also play as usual and maintain their previous balancing.
However, aside from the feeling when firing the weapons, nearly everything in gameplay is likely to change. We can only be sure once the developers release more information about it.
If you want to take a closer look at the gameplay differences, I recommend our video on this: Call of Duty: Vanguard in 12 minutes – Gameplay and gameplay changes
